Concrete piling and production thereof.



L. WOLFLEY.

CONCRETE PILING AND PRODUCTION THEREOP.

APPLICATION FILED AUG.19,1907.

Patented Jan. 119, 1909.

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s@ my@ @UNM @aseo L. WoLPLEY. CONCRETE FILING AND PRODUCTION TIEIEREOI".y

APPLICATION FILED AUG. 19,1907.

Patented Jan. 19, 1909.

2 'sHBETsfsHEET z.

@Montag UNITED STATES *PATENT formen.

LEWIS woLrLEnor rREscorr, iin-Izena. TERRITORY.

CONCRETE FILING AND PRODUCTION TEEREOF.

spcification er Letters Patent. ippiicnuouie iugm 19, iaoi. serial in. 339,255.

Patented Jan. 19, 1909.

reception of the mortar and afterwards ref moved, leaving the pile completely formed.

The invention has for one of its objects the more ready and -elicient production of piles from concrete or other material capable of hardening and which, when set or hardened, forms a durable body such as concrete.

A further object is to make the piles more compact and more firmly set in the surrounding earth.

A further object is to facilitate the depositing of mortar or other material within the tube or casing, especially when the piles are being made in wet ound or under water.

A further object is to construct a series or sheet of piling composed of individual piles united'or formed in' the process of making' into a continuous sheet or wall. l The piling formed in accordance with my invention is particularly suitable for levees, breakwaters, sea piers, foundations on land and under water, and in fact for all, purposes for which wooden or separate individual concrete piles have been used.

Further obpcts will more full 'appear as tI proceed wit the description o the invenion.

The invention consists in the novel features of concrete piling and method of making saine hereinafter described, and illustrlated1 in the accompanying drawings, in w ic Figure 1 is a view showing in vertical sec? method of connecting the sections. Figs. 5

Athat the mixture remains intact.

andi are similar views, respectively, -of a modification of the same.

Referring to the drawings, and first particularly to Fig. 1 thereof, A is a hollow pilie- 1 tube creasing, preferably in sections, hereinafter termed 4the casing, which is sunk in amiysuitable way to the required d th in the .earth to form a hole for the p' e. A number of such casings are shown, designated as A, A', A2, A3, A4. I prefer to sink the casing, as shown at A, by means of a water-jet, and for this purpose employ a nozzle B having a diameter nearly equal to the internal diameter of the casing and con- `nected by pipe b witha source of water under pressure (not shown). The lower face of the nozzle is preferably convex and perforated, so as to roject jets downwardly and outwardly, and) pipe b is of such length that the nozzle may be kept at or near the bottom of the casing. As the casing is sunk, the material will pass upwardly outside of the casing and very little, if any, water will escape into the casing. After the casing h as beensunk to the proper depth, the material which is to form the concrete is i-ntroduced into the up er end of the casing. Heietofore it has een the practice to permit the material, usually composed of a mixture of cement, sand, gravel, broken stone, and water, to fall to the bottom of the casing. This, however, dissociates the ingredients and, if water is present in thecasing (as .is likely when the work is being carried on in wet ground or under water) washes the cement coating from the solid parts so that only a weak and inferior concrete, if any, is formed. In accordance with my invention, Ilnwer a given mass of material bodily and deposit it at the bottom of the casing so To eil'ect this I employ a dump bucket C of any suit- 4able.construction but preferably, as show n, consisting` of a body-portion increasing 1n diameter from top downward, and a rop bottom c controlled by a latch c. This bucket will not be further-described in detail here, as it forms the subject of a separate application. In lowering the bucket when the latch o' strikes the bottom within' pecially where long piles are to be made, I prefer to make the casing in sections suitably jointed, as by screw-threads, as shown at a, in Figs. 1 and 4. Pipe b is then also divided' into similar sections.

In the formation of a single pile, the cas ing is sunk to the required depth and a hole formed in any suitable way. The bucket containing material to form the concrete pile is then lowered. into the casing, and on reaching the bottom, the material is deposited and the bucket withdrawn. The casing is then partially withdrawn far enough to discharge most of the mortar into the hole. The material is then ressed or tamped to force it into the interstices of the surrounding earth and form a compact mass. These operations are repeated until the pile is completed. As the sections of the casing rise above the ground or water level they are disconnected and removed, thus avoiding the necessity of raising the mortar the full height 'of the emerged casing before lowering it therein.

In the formation of a series of piles; such as in the making of alevee, it is desirable not only that the individual piles should be placed close together, but in order to prevent undermining they should be firmly and directly united so 'as to form a concrete sheet-pilin or unbroken line of piles. In order to e ect this I employ a plurality of casings, as shown in Fig. 1, .which are sunk into the ground close to or in contact -witheach other, and in such alinement as to form the desired contour or direction of the sheet of piling. The casings A, A', A2, A, A* show various stages in the progress of making the piling, but not necessarily the actual arrangement of the work.

I preferably rst sink a number of casings and form holes, as indicated at A', Fig. 1 the number of these casings being optiona but preferably sufiicient to allow space for the sinking gang and the filling gang to work without interference, and to revent the newly set pilin from being bro en by sinking a casing a joining it. A complete pile is then formed in the first casing, as hereinbefore described, or in any suitable way, this pile contacting with the adjoining casing. Such a pile 1s indicated at D. The next individual pile is then formed by introducing concrete material into and withdrawing -the next casing, as hereinbefore described. The tamping or pressing of this material forces it into the interstices of the surrounding earth, and into contact with the next casing in advance. It is also forced into intimate contact with the adjacent formed pile, the concrete material of which has not vyet been set, and firmly unites therewith. 'Under the pressure, the material spreads slightly, to form what might be termed a connecting part or web d between the adjacent piles, uniting them into-a coiitinuous sheet. Itis not necessary to completely formlthe ,first pile before beginning the second. of the series, as the second may be begun just after and follow the iirst. As casings are removed from completed piles they are reset at the advance end of the line, and again used as described. In some casesv I may have several piles in the line under construction at the same time.

It is .sometimes diiiicult to drive or sink the casings in alinement and cause them to be side by side throughout their length, and in such cases I provide interlocking guides for the casings which, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4, comprise a tongue E riveted or otherwise secured to one side of the casing,

and a groove F secured to the other side. These interlockwith the groove and tongue, respectively of adjacent casings, so that the proper continuity of the structure is assured. When a curved sheet of pilingl is required, casings with these interlocking devices placed at different angular positions, or suitably modified, are provided. .The tongues and roove are of course so arranged as not to interfere with the screw-thread orother connection of the casing sections, as shown in Fig. 4.-

1n Figs. 5 and 6 I have shown a modified arrangement of interlocking devices and section connection. Here two tongues are provided spaced at such a distance -apart that when interlocked with the grooves H, I-I of an adjacent casing the sidesA of the casing will approach'l very closely or contact with each other, so as to facilitate the union of the adjacent piles. In Fig. 6 I have also shown a bayonetI joint connection forthe casing sections, in which. a reduced end a of one section lits into the adjacent end of the other section where it is secured by a pin a2 engaging slot a3. There are as many of these parts coperating as are necessary for strength and when in the locked position the tongues and ooves of the sections will always be in a ement. 4

' Many other changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. For instance, different modes of sinking the casings and removing the earth from the interior thereof may l g be employed; the casings need not be round or circular as shown, but may be of any desired Vcross section; the exact sequence of operations is. not essential in every aspect of the invention; and various changes may be made in the details of the apparatus and method without departing from the invention.

By the term concrete material as used in this specification and claims, I intend to include any fluid or plastic material capable of hardemng and suitable for the purpose described.

Having thusdescribed my invention, what 'I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is-

l. The method of making concrete piling which consists in molding a sheet of individual piles in place, withdrawing the molding means each pile "being united to the adjacent pile by the pile material when the molding means is withdrawn, and permitting said material to harden.

- 2. The method of making concrete piling which consists in sinking a plurality ot' tubes or casings into the ground in close proximity to each other, introducing concrete material in a fluid or plastic state into said tubes or casings, and withdrawing said tubes or casings to permit said material of each to dischai'ge and unite with the material from an adjacent tube or casing.

3. The method of making concrete piling which consists in sinking a plurality of tubes or casings into the ground in close proximity to each other, forming a pile from concrete material by means of and withdrawing a tube or casing, then forming another Vpile in Contact with the tirst pile by means of and withdrawing an adjacent tube or casing, and permitting the material of said piles to unite and set. l

4: The method of making concrete piling whichconsists in sinking a sectional tube or casing, forming a pile from Huid or plastic material therein,Y slowly withdrawing said tube or casing to permit said material to dischargeat its lower end, and removing the sections from the upper end of said tube or casing as they reach a predetermined level.

The method of making concrete piles which consists in sinking a sectional tube or casing. into the ground to the proper depth, removing the earth from the interior of the tube or casing, introducing concrete material into the tube or casing, partly withdrawing the tube or casing to permit the material to discharge at its lower end, and detaching sections of the tube or casing as they reach a predetermined level.

6. The method of making a series or sheet of concrete piling which consists in separately molding individual piles in place and causing the adjacent piles to be connected by the union of the pile material.

7. The method of making a series or sheet of concrete piling which consists in sepal rately molding individual piles in place and causing the material of adjacent piles to merge and form an integral uniting web.

8. The method of making concrete piling which consists in sinking a plurality of tubes or casings into the ground in close proximity to each other, forming a pile from concrete material by means of and withdrawing a tube or casing, introducing a limited amount of said material into an adjacent tube or casing, partly withdrawing this tube or casing to permit the material to discharge at its lower end, and pressing or tamping said material to compact the same in contact with the adjacent pile.

9. The method of making concrete piling Y which consists in sinking a sectional tube or casing, introducing' concrete material therein, withdrawing said tube or casing, and removing the sections from the upper end of said tube or casing as they reach a predetermined level.

In testimony whereof I aiiix my signature, in presence of two witnesses.

LEwis wo'LFLEY.

Witnesses:

A. M. ALLEN, G. W. BAILEY.- 

